


Freak

by xXBookwormXx



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - Fandom
Genre: Abuse, Bullying, Child Abuse, Gen, Magic, Young Chastity, Young Credence, accidental magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-07
Packaged: 2018-09-06 13:06:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8752735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xXBookwormXx/pseuds/xXBookwormXx
Summary: His hand hurt, his eyes were red with tears and the urge to run away was so strong he was surprised he was resisting it.But the pain of the belt slapped across his palm was little compared to the tug he felt at his heart. He was no longer seen as a son in her eyes. After all, why would a woman who despises witchcraft love a magical child?





	

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, basically, this story is about Credence accidentally using magic and then bad things happen.
> 
> It's entirely headcannons and stuff though and there's so much evidence saying it's not true, something like this probably never happened, but I didn't care and went ahead and wrote it anyway. So, I hope you guys like it :3 
> 
> Thanks for reading!

Credence wasn't always the boy who recieved regular beatings from Mary Lou. He wasn't always the one shunned by Chastity or by most of the other orphan children. He wasn't always the one who spent hours in the basement crying.

He was once one of Mary Lou's favourites, after Chastity of course. Respected and looked up to by the younger children, Mary Lou had been proud of her son. She knew of his background, of course, but she believed she had stamped the magic out of him. And because of this, she considered him her greatest achievement, like a trophy to show of to others, as if to prove that magic could be eradicated within a child. It was her own private boast, like a comfort that she was able to achieve her goals in the instances when she did doubt herself.

This however all changed when Credence reached the age of eight and, as customary, his shows of magical power became more powerful and less like strange and random little occurances that were nothing to worry about. Luckily, most of his displays were rather lacking in anything spectacular or worth noticing.

Until however, he caused a havoc at the breakfast table. 

Chastity, his older, more obedient and also adopted sibling had been giving the breakfast to the children while Credence handed out leaflets. It was normal, uniform, safe. Nothing unusual ever happened. 

Mary Lou had been upstairs, in her room, coming up with new ways of locating and slaying witches. She did this often and it was nothing new. It was a chance though for the children out of hand and for Credence to bully some of the younger children.

Credence enjoyed putting others down. It made him feel more powerful and better about himself. He liked the pleasure which came from viewing their pain, their misery. 

Today's victim was a four year old girl named May, who was talking too loudly for his liking. Chastity ignored her, as she did all things that bothered her. Credence on the other hand, took action.

He walked over to her, sneering and arrogant. "You're talking too loudly."

The little girl turned around halfway, her bottom lip trembling and her eyes wide with fear. Credence felt guilt hit him hard as it always did before he did something awful to someone. But he had an image to maintain and he wasn't going to risk his reputation for a cute little girl. 

"P-please, sir," May begged,"I shan't d-do it again."

"You know what happens to people who talk too loudly, don't you?" Credence said, his small hands curling up into fists. 

Her eyes were wet and as she pleaded for forgiveness for a crime that was hardly her fault. "P-please!" 

He retracted his arm as he prepared to punch the smaller girl but before anything of the sort could occur, an eight year old boy grabbed him around the waist. 

"Don't worry, May!" the boy said,"I'll stop 'im.

"Get off of me!" Credence snarled, irritation creeping into his voice.

The boy refused and that resulted in Credence losing his temper, mainly out of fear. The boy was much bigger than Credence after all and a year older than him and it terrified him. He'd never faced anyone but three or four year olds, who were easy targets.

The boy flew back against the wall and stuck there, unable to move. The children and Credence gaped at the boy who had seemed as though he had finally beaten the bully. 

Chastity's head rose for the first time throughout the entire event. Her eyes drifted over the group of children to his younger brother. She then stood up. 

Credence's eyes were wide with terror and his stomach began doing gymnastics. His mouth went dry and warm tears slid down his cheeks as he realised what he'd done. Fear filled him. 

As Chastity began to walk upstairs, he raced after her, pleading with her, hoping she would show some sort of sisterly love towards him. They were siblings after all, maybe not through blood but through bond and that was more powerful, right? Chastity wouldn't tell Ma he'd done witchcraft, she couldn't. 

"It was an accident," he begged, salty tears streaming into his mouth,"Don't tell Ma, Chastity, p-please I-I'm your brother."

But Chastity didn't listen. She was a good girl. She had always been jealous of the amount of attention Credence got anyway. Now she, her mother's loyal, pure child would be the only true child.

Credence collapsed in a heap by the stair, shaking with tears and terrified of what would happen to him. He'd never been beaten before. And his seven year old mind was struggling to comprehend why Chastity wasn't listening to him. 

The orphans simply stared, unsure of how to feel. Credence was a bully and a freak after all but he looked so fragile and scared. Their conflicted minds led them to do nothing but watch.

When Mary Lou was informed by Chastity of what happened, she didn't speak at first. She had gone into total and utter shock. 

"He did what?" she echoed, hoping she had heard wrong and that her belief that magic could be erased from a child was still intact.

"He stuck Cecil to a wall," Chastity repeated.

The shock then turned to anger. Blazing fury coursing through her veins. She was beyond mad, she was livid. 

She stormed down the stair and grapped the crying seven year old by the collar, Chastity walking quickly behind her. 

Credence had never seen her so angry or ruthless, staring at him as though he was something nasty that she'd stepped on. If he had been frightened before, it was nothing compared to what he had experienced now. 

"Belt," she said, holding out her hand, her expression ferocious and her thoughts violent. 

Credence shook his head. "P-please, Ma, it was j-just an accident. I-I won't ever d-do it again."

"Belt!" she shrieked, ignoring his desperate apology. 

Chastity watched, with gleeful eyes, leaning against the banister. She saw Credence's punishment for every time Mary Lou had chosen him over her. 

Fingers trembling, and still gasping out apologies, Credence pulled out his belt and held it out to Mary Lou. He risked a glance into her eyes and, his heart sinking, saw nothing but hatred in the place of where pride used to be. 

Mary Lou snatched it off him and pulled out the boy's soft hand. She hit him harder than she had ever hit a child before.

Credence screamed, tears streaming from his eyes as dark red mark appeared in the place where he had been hit.

"M-ma, please," he sobbed, desperately trying to pull his hand away from her. 

But her grip was like iron, and it hurt almost as much as the stinging mark.

She hit him again. And again. And again. Each hit was as vicious as the last and she showed no sign of stopping. Blood dripped down his hand and onto the floor, pooling in a puddle of red. 

Credence felt sick. And his eyes were puffy from crying and his hand had gone numb. He could feel the other children watching him so he hunched up his shoulders and bowed his head, self-concious and so aware of everyone watching him.

He could almost hear them laughing and whispering behind his back and his face flushed with embarrassment. He wanted to run off and cry. He wanted to hide someplace no one would find him. But most of all, he wanted Mary Lou to stop beating him. 

He continued crying, expecting her to stop and comfort him. But nothing of the sort happened. "M-ma," he choked out from between the tears,"It wasn't m-my fault. I-it was-" 

She glared at the crying boy, and pulled him close to her and whispered into his ear. "I'm not your Ma," she murmured, her voice quiet and cold,"Your mother was a cruel and disgusting witch."

Credence was almost positive this was the moment that he broke. The tears ceased and he slouched forward, all confidence within himself lost. He realised the woman in front of him would never consider him a son and certainly never treat him like one. Not while he had the ability to do witchcraft.

Mary Lou no longer looked at the boy with pride. Instead she saw him as a failure. And it was his fault, not hers. She would had to try again and next time she would succeed. Credence was simply to be cast aside. After all, who wants to have a symbol of their failure being treated like a king? 

It seemed as though she was whipping him for an hour before she handed him back his belt and shoved him in the direction of the cellar. "Go," she said,"And do not come out until you've ridden yourself of witchcraft and have thought of what you've done to poor Cecil."

The boy shuffled down the stairs into the basement and curled up into a ball and Mary Lou slammed the door, masking the room in darkness. Credence was terrified of the dark but his mind was dwelling on other topics so he didn't really take much notice to the pitch blackness surrounding him.

He felt the pain of the flogging disappearing quicker than normal and his mind immediately jumped to the conclusion that it was witchcraft. He rubbed his hand desperately, maybe hoping he could somehow rub the magic off.

Credence slammed his hand against the floor in frustration, as his hand continued to heal at an accelerated rate.Why couldn't he get rid of his magic? He tried so hard to do so, but he found that he couldn't. 

Why had his mother passed her curse of magic onto him? He didn't want to be magical. He wanted to be like the other children, normal and ordinary. He wanted Mary Lou to be proud of him again, to treat like he was royalty. 

Credence did his best to squash the magic down, determined never to let it resurface again. He wouldn't let it. He would never let Ma down again. She had saved him from his mother after all and he was forever in her debt. 

Mary Lou was determined to find another magical child and try to crush the witchcraft out of them. This attempt would be successful. She would ensure it. 

She adopted a girl who she called Modesty. Maybe it work on a girl. Girls were sensible after all. Far more sensible than boys, who were brash, immature and hotheaded. She would craft Modesty like she had Chastity - in her own image.

It was a full day before Credence was allowed to come out of the basement. He had never felt more awful in his seven years. He was starving, cold and bored. He hoped Mary Lou had forgiven him. 

The first thing Ma had done when he got out of the basement was introduce him to Modesty who was to be his new sister. And that was when Credence realised he'd been replaced. Modesty was being treated the way Credence had been treated before he'd performed witchcraft. Once, Credence would've felt hatred towards the two year old girl, but now he was just tired.

He handed out leaflets at the breakfast table, as he usually did, but he noticed how quiet the children were after Mary Lou had gone upstairs. He was glad for it but also hated it. It gave him time to think but he felt as though everyone was watching him and he didn't want to think, because he could only think of things he didn't wish to ponder. 

But when the silence did break, he wished it hadn't. Cecil had been watching him warily, before grinning and whispering loudly,"Freak." Credence flinched and stared down at the floor. 

Cecil was delighting in Credence's newfound lack of self-confidence and self-worth. He could now make Credence pay for what he did to May. But soon, the name-calling made him feel good and he began to bully Credence. 

And it wasn't just Cecil. The other children had begun to torment their tormentor. And, just like Cecil, it became less about 'he deserves this because he did this to us' and more about 'he deserves this because he's a freak'.

Credence was beaten everyday after the event and his hand was badly scarred because of those punishments. Mary Lou never showed any pity or remorse but never seemed to delight in it either. She did it with a cold air and cruel eye. 

It wasn't until after Credence had been injured badly because of the children ganging up on him so as to inflict as many wounds as possible that he found hope. 

His eyes was blackened, his lip had spilt, his nose was bleeding and various other bruises on his back, legs and back. He struggled to his feet, but fell down again. He wanted to give up but he wouldn't let himself. 

That was when a little hand wrapped around his. He turned slightly to check who it was and was surprised when he saw it was Modesty. She had a flower in her hand, bright yellow and slightly crushed. The little girl held it out to him. Credence accepted her and managed a surprised word of thanks. Then as quickly as she had come, she left.

He stared at the flower his hand and then realised that it meant that Modesty would always be there for him, despite her young age. He held the flower closer to his chest because the it gave him hope. 

And hope had been all he needed.


End file.
